How to Attract Worms to a Yard

Earthworms thrive in improved habitats.

Earthworms are vital to healthy garden soils. Their feeding, burrowing and casting works to decompose organic material, recycle present nutrients and enhance the soil's structure, creating a rich, loose and organic foundation for your plants. The best way to attract earthworms to your garden is to give them an environment in which they will thrive. Buying earthworms to add to inhospitable soil will prove fruitless, but you can draw them to the garden naturally by amending the soil with organic compost, the foods they love. Adding a thick layer of organic mulch will keep the moisture levels constant and add to the worms' food source.

Making Compost

1

Choose a secluded area in the garden to begin building a compost heap directly on the bare earth. Ground level compost will attract earthworms. Lay a few inches of straw over the earth patch. This is a good foundation for the compost as it helps to keep it aerated.

2

Add alternating layers of moist material including fruit and vegetable kitchen scraps, seaweed and garden waste, then dry compost such as straw and wood ash. Add a layer of nitrogen-rich ingredients such as grass cuttings and leaves. Earthworms need a little gritty soil to help them digest the compost, so add a thin layer of soil over the heap.

3

Water the heap. Cover it with any covering, such as a plastic tarp, wooden board or old rug to keep the environment warm and moist. Continue to water when needed.

4

Use a compost thermometer to monitor the temperature within the heap. Compost material begins to decompose when the temperature within reaches 110 degrees Fahrenheit. The heap will be established within two to three weeks and ready to be turned with a spade or garden fork.

5

Keep your compost pile working for you throughout the growing season by simply digging in new material without continued layering. Keep it moist and continue to monitor the temperature, aerating the heap by turning it over if the temperature dips below 110 F.

Adding Compost to Garden

1

Dig your garden bed over to a depth of 6 inches, using a pitch or garden fork to loosen, aerate and till the soil.

2

Add approximately 3 inches of compost from your established heap, digging it into the loosened soil.

3

Plant your flowers, shrubs, roses and bulbs where you want them to grow. Add a thin lay of mulch to soil surface to help retain moisture levels in the soil, keep weeds at bay and offer food to the earthworms.

Things You Will Need

Vegetable kitchen waste

Straw

Wood ash

Grass cuttings

Leaves

Garden fork

Shovel

Compost covering material

Compost thermometer

Tips

Wood ash tends to clump together when it's wet, making it slow to break down in the compost heap. It should be sprinkled loosely over the heap.

If your compost heap has an unpleasant smell, it may be too compacted and will need to be turned with your garden fork.

Warnings

Avoid adding diseased plant material to the compost heap, because once the compost is placed in the garden soil, the disease may be transferred with it.

If you build it, they will come. Buying earthworms and adding them to poor soil will simply make them move on or they will die due to lack of nourishment.

About the Author

Canadian writer Lorraine Syratt has been writing since 1980. She obtained her journalism credentials from Conestoga College and has since had work published with "Canadian Living Magazine," "Treasures" and "Mountainside Fitness."